1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a rechargeable lithium battery, and more particularly, to a rechargeable lithium battery having a separator interposed between positive and negative electrodes including a ceramic material.
2. Description of the Related Art
Rechargeable Lithium batteries have recently drawn attention as a power source for small portable electronic devices. Since the rechargeable lithium batteries use an organic electrolyte solution, rechargeable lithium batteries have twice the discharge voltage of conventional batteries which use an alkali aqueous solution. Accordingly, the rechargeable lithium batteries have a higher energy density.
Such a rechargeable lithium battery includes a positive electrode including a positive active material, a negative electrode including a negative material, and an electrolyte. As for positive active materials for a positive electrodes, oxides including lithium and transition elements capable of intercalating lithium ions, such as LiCoO2, LiMn2O4, LiNi1-xCoxO2(0<x<1), and the like have been used.
As for negative active materials for negative electrodes, diverse carbon-based materials capable of intercalating and deintercalating lithium ions such as artificial graphite, natural graphite, and hard carbon, or non-carbon-based materials such as silicon, tin oxide, lithium vanadium-based oxide, and the like have been used.
A separator is positioned between positive and negative electrodes to separate the positive and negative electrodes, and such a separator is an electrically insulating polymer film made of polyethylene, polypropylene, and the like.